Blue Chips: Inside Michigan’s in-state recruiting efforts
I recently caught up with Curtis Blackwell, founder of Detroit-based Sound Mind Sound Body, to get his thoughts on Michigan’s in-state recruiting efforts and top targets in his program.
Here are some highlights from the interview.
On Michigan’s in-state recruiting efforts:
“Michigan has done a really good job of locking down the state of Michigan and prioritizing the top guys in the state of Michigan. Obviously, winning battles for guys like Will Johnson and Semaj Morgan is paying dividends because those guys are influencers to the young guys in the city and the state. They’re like magnets reeling in other guys. On top of that, when kids get on campus, the first thing they do is talk to Will, Semaj and Makari (Paige). That helps more than anything else because the kids are doing the recruiting for the coaches.”
On if the bridges with high school coaches have been completely repaired:
“As I’ve said, the staff that they have is very approachable and relatable. The kids have the opportunity to kick it with the coaches. When you go out to most of the events at Michigan, the coaches are interacting with the high school coaches and the kids. They make themselves available. That’s something you don’t see from staffs across America. Coach (Steve) Clinkscale, Coach (Ron) Bellamy and Coach (Mike) Hart are some of the best guys to have assigned to the state of Michigan.”
On On300 Michigan DB commit Jacob Oden:
“He’s a leader. He’s very intelligent. He has a high football IQ. In 7v7, Jacob is like a coach on the field. He has a lot of confidence. He’s a student of the game. He lives and breathes football everyday. Jacob is also a worker. He probably works out seven days a week. He’s a 4.0 student, so he’s a great student to go along with the football IQ and work ethic. On top of that, Jacob has wanted to go to Michigan his whole life. This is something he’s visualized since he was five or six years old.”
On On300 Michigan LB target Jeremiah Beasley:
“He’s one of the biggest influencers in the state of Michigan. He’s been in Sound Mind Sound Body since he was seven or eight with his brother, Maliq Carr. Jeremiah and Jacob are probably the closest out of any kids in the state. They played little league together. They play with Sound Mind Sound Body. Jacob is working hard on Jeremiah. I’m interested to see how it shakes out.”
On five-star Michigan QB target Bryce Underwood:
“Bryce is the guy. He’s the No. 1 quarterback in America. Bryce is really warming up to Michigan. To Michigan’s credit, they started off early with Bryce. That has allowed them to be in position to do some of the things they’ve been doing like getting him on campus more often. Michigan is positioning themselves well with Bryce. Now, they have to close the deal. It would be a home run. If Bryce is able to continue to do what he’s doing, he may have one of the best runs in high school history. For that kid to go to Michigan, you can’t ask for a better story. He would be even bigger than Dante Moore. He’s had such a big career and has that opportunity to be bigger than Dante Moore. That would be a big, big, big get for Michigan.”
On other names Michigan fans should know:
“Tre Poteat, my nephew, really likes Michigan. Coach Clinkscale has done a nice job getting in on him. He really likes Michigan. CJ Sadler is another kid that Michigan needs to continue to work hard at. Coach Clinkscale has a great relationship with CJ. That’s another guy that would be a big get. Trae Taylor, a young quarterback from Chicago, is another kid Michigan is working hard on. That’s a guy they should stay on. Those are some of the top young guys.”
The post Blue Chips: Inside Michigan’s in-state recruiting efforts appeared first on On3.
